Leaving things in the on position.

[GuidoHunter]

Originally Posted by Squeek

a) Heat. Computers get hot. Even with fans running, they get hot. It's never enough to get it to the breaking point with just a few hours, but leaving it on all the time is pretty bad for it.

Leaving it on all the time will have your computer operate well within the range for which it was designed. The components were designed to handle temperatures much greater than operating temperatures for extended periods of time, so heat shouldn't be of any concern unless you're worried about dust clogging your fans or any other failure of a cooling mechanism.

b) Mechanics. Guess what, computers use mechanics to work! Guess what, mechanics wear out! Guess what, things still process in your computer while it's off! So those mechanics are working 24/7 instead of 4-10 hours a day.

And those mechanics are designed to handle millions upon millions of cycles, which translates to years of continual use. For humans and for machines there is an ideal amount of use under which "use it or lose it" dominates and above which "use it AND lose it" dominates. Sure, too much use will wear something out, but if you store your car for a year straight, don't expect to find it in running condition when you come back.

While periodically turning your computer off is probably better for your computer, I will not agree with the statement that leaving it running all the time is necessarily bad.

That said, my computer's always on. A silent bedroom is a creepy, bad bedroom. My nine fans make a good amount of noise, and I like it that way. I always turn my monitor and speakers off when I leave the apartment or go to sleep, but even if I leave town for the weekend I'll sometimes leave the computer on.

Six or seven years of this operation and it's still kickin' just fine.

Oh, and I always leave my cellphone on because I always want to be able to receive calls (sometimes I'll turn it off for class; cycling affects the microphones in class and thus the DVDs for the distance students). Plus, I have two batteries, so if one dies I don't have to wait for it to recharge before I can use it again.

--Guido

http://andy.mikee385.com

[Loot You]

my computer is on 24/7 no matter what, even if I'm gone for weeks at a time. there's also a fan in my room that is on 24/7, I need to clean it like every week though.

[DrugstoreCowboy]

Computer Online Time: 20 days, 10 hours, 59 minutes.
(according to AIM)

I try not to turn off my computer.
And honestly, I cant even remember the last time my phone was actually off. Maybe a few months ago?

[redwrist]

when your comp is on even with the intuernal <sp> fan things get warmer
it is said that if you turn your comp on and off the heating and cooling can **** stuff up. I just read that somewhere idk if its true

[Squeek]

Chips have a wide range of tolerable temperatures, ranging from much colder than room temperature to much warmer than room temperature. They're not likely to burn out just from rapid temperature change like your computer being on or off.

Guido:

1) It is an issue if you happen to keep your computer in a confined space like some idiots I know. HEY LET'S PUT THE COMPUTER IN THE DESK CABINET! THAT WAY WE HIDE THE WIRES!

Heck even my parents keep their entertainment stuff in a wall unit with a glass door. I keep telling them to keep the door open when they use it, but they don't listen. And they wonder why they've been through four DVD players in 6 years while I have never had one break down on me.

2) See above statement about it being "bad". It's just people using things incorrectly.

3) My whole point is that there's no noticeable difference in normal use other than electricity consumption, so why wouldn't you turn it off?

4) I always have a fan on me because I cannot stand silence. I have one on my desk and one on my bed. I have a ceiling fan, a vent fan for blowing out hot/cold air from my ventilation, and a backup fan.

[Doug31]

Am I the only one that turns off all computers every night?

[Squeek]

Originally Posted by Doug31

Am I the only one that turns off all computers every night?

Didn't I already say I do that?

I've been turning my computer off every time I'm done using it since I've had my first computer. Let's see, that was... 1990. So, 17 years.

[Doug31]

You probably did, but I was too lazy to read the whole thing.

[hoochan]

I put my computer into hibernation and I never turn off my cell phone.

[tsugomaru]

I leave my computer on out of habit. Back when I owned a laptop, I would always leave it on because it just took five minutes to start up, which was way too long. And after it starts up, I have to log in and that's another five minutes.

After almost 5 years, the time my laptop would stay on started decreasing and decreasing. At first, it'd stay on for about a day before forcing itself to shut down and soon enough, it could only run for about three hours before it'd shut itself down.

The computer I currently have in nearing it's first year birthday and I'm hoping it'll last as long as the laptop, if not longer. And maybe I'll start shutting down my computer if it helps last longer. Maybe.

~Tsugomaru

[MikeHum]

Yeah, I USED to keep my computer on all the time, but it cost me my whole computer. I'm not sure how, but I left it on and overnight there was a power outage, in which a transformer was destroyed. I woke up and my computer had turned off. I tried turning it on and it got to a certain part in the loading up phase, but then just restarted. We tried safe mode, everything. It just kept restarting itself. Luckily, we were able to perform a system recovery and now I lost all my files, but at least I can play FFR. It could've been worse, to the point where even a system recovery wouldn't work. I guess I'm just lucky.

[kylehaas]

I never turn my computer off, but I always have my monitor off when idle...
As for video game consoles, never leave them on longer than necessary.

[tsugomaru]

I'm not really afraid my computer will break down, I bought the parts based on how long they've been said to last. I just want this computer to out last my laptop, which lasted a pretty long time.

I like turning off my monitor when I'm not using it. It's something I've always dreamed of doing; my old laptop screen cannot be turned off when I'm not using it. The only way to get rid of the screen light is by folding the laptop and the closest I could get to leaving the laptop on is have it go to sleep instead of hibernating.

~Tsugomaru

[GuidoHunter]

Originally Posted by Squeek

3) My whole point is that there's no noticeable difference in normal use other than electricity consumption, so why wouldn't you turn it off?

Hey, I never argued against it because it's a perfectly good stance.

I'm just willing to pay the extra buck or two a month so that people can always communicate with me via the computer and so that I don't have to go through the long-ass startup every morning.

4) I always have a fan on me because I cannot stand silence. I have one on my desk and one on my bed. I have a ceiling fan, a vent fan for blowing out hot/cold air from my ventilation, and a backup fan.

I also run the ceiling fan whenever I'm in the room and the AC fan runs periodically. It's not that my room would be silent without the computer; it's that it would just lack the noise made by the computer, and that's the creepy part.

--Guido

http://andy.mikee385.com

[Squeek]

Seriously startup is an issue still?

Most computers start up in like 30 seconds to a minute. I hit the button and barely get myself comfortable in my chair by the time my computer is ready to go.

Well, if your startup time is 5-10 minutes, I can see why you'd want to leave it on if you're only going to be away for an hour or so.

[YoUgOtBeAtByAgUrL]

I usually keep my computer on since I'm pretty much always running some sort of torrent, the times I'm not torrenting, I shut it down. My megawatts

[lord_carbo]

Conserve energy for rechargeable batteries, guys. Turn off the backlight whenever you can for your mp3 player. The charge lasts longer, so in result the battery does, too.

We keep our computer on overnight, though.

Originally Posted by MikeHum

Yeah, I USED to keep my computer on all the time, but it cost me my whole computer. I'm not sure how, but I left it on and overnight there was a power outage, in which a transformer was destroyed. I woke up and my computer had turned off. I tried turning it on and it got to a certain part in the loading up phase, but then just restarted. We tried safe mode, everything. It just kept restarting itself. Luckily, we were able to perform a system recovery and now I lost all my files, but at least I can play FFR. It could've been worse, to the point where even a system recovery wouldn't work. I guess I'm just lucky.

what the ****

how does that happen. No, seriously.

[Tibs]

Can't remember what happened 17 days ago. Most likely a software update. Computer runs ver well.

[Squeek]

Originally Posted by lord_carbo

what the ****

how does that happen. No, seriously.

If you don't have an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) it can literally fry all of your internal components.

[GamerShadow]

I turn off my computer, it saves the family a few hundred dollars.